Seattle is preparing for soccer fans to flock to the city this summer for six World Cup matches. The international soccer tournament has been years in the making, but this isn't the first time nations from around the world have sent some of their best athletes to compete in the Emerald City.
In the summer of 1990, the Goodwill Games brought sports stars to Seattle to help ease Cold War tensions.
On July 20, 1990, thousands of people filled the University of Washington's Husky Stadium for the welcome ceremony. Musicians such as Reba McEntire and Kenny Loggins performed for the crowds before athletes from over 50 nations paraded around the stadium. Former President Ronald Reagan gave opening remarks and wished the competitors luck.
"The games are beginning and you have the opportunity to excel. But, equally important, you have the opportunity to demonstrate before all the world that friendly competition is not only possible, but important," Reagan said. "All the world will be watching and cheering you on."
The Goodwill Games were a multi-sport event spanning 17 days that resembled the Olympics. It was centered in Seattle, but competitions were held in six other cities across Washington state as well. A total of 21 events included ice hockey, track and field, judo, baseball and gymnastics.
The United States and the Soviet Union were the stars of the show, since the games were taking place at the end of the Cold War era. The Berlin Wall had come down the year before and there was hope that the two superpowers could find a way to peacefully coexist.
"Recent events hint of a new age of global peace and communication and hopes run high," the official guide for the 1990 games told readers. "Now, the world awaits the greatest celebration of athletics, art, and trade between the Soviet Union and the United States in the history of our two countries."
The Soviet Union would collapse a little over a year later.
The Goodwill Games competition was the brainchild of the late Ted Turner, the media mogul known for creating CNN. He was inspired to hold the event after the U.S. boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, which the Soviet Union responded to by boycotting the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.
"What [Turner] wanted to do was launch an international sporting event that featured the Soviet Union and the United States in new ways to bring the world together instead of tearing the world apart," said Gretchen Sorensen, who worked as a spokesperson for the games in Seattle.
The first Goodwill Games took place in 1986 in Moscow, making Seattle the event's second host city and its first in the U.S. Turner Broadcasting System televised the games around the world.
Taking on this event required huge investments, such as building the Weyerhaeuser Aquatic Center in Federal Way to house the swimming competitions. A new track was installed at Husky Stadium (later removed in a major renovation of the stadium in 2012). On top of sports, large-scale arts and cultural events were scheduled as well.
An exhibition at the Washington State Convention Center titled "Moscow: Treasures and Traditions" displayed Russian art works and artifacts. The Seattle Opera House hosted Soviet singers who performed War and Peace and Soviet ballet dancers who performed for local audiences.
Still, the Goodwill Games didn't catch everyone's attention, which Sorensen found out firsthand.
"I called all my friends and they'd say, 'Oh do you want me to send you my old clothes?' and I'd say, 'I'm not going to work for Goodwill, I'm going to work for the Goodwill Games,'" Sorensen said.
Ahead of the games, organizers had to convince skeptical city and state leaders that inviting the Soviets to Seattle was a good idea. Kathy Scanlan was the executive vice president of the Goodwill Games' organizing committee.
Scanlan said they told officials: "This is a moment in time where Seattle can shine and we can all learn more about people who have been our traditional enemy."
As the event approached, newspaper headlines proclaimed excitement and concern. If you didn't know better, some could have been about this year's World Cup: Rising measles cases, faltering ticket sales and potential traffic jams.
Art Thiel covered the 1990 games for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Later in his career he would also provide sports commentary for KNKX.
The Goodwill Games did not approach the magnitude of the World Cup or the Olympics, Thiel said, but they had their moments — specifically, the men's 100-meter dash.
"I don't think Seattle will ever hold an Olympic games and this was as close as Seattle did and will get to the vibe of an Olympics," he said.
The race was a duel between two of America's best sprinters, Carl Lewis, 29, and Leroy Burrell, 23. Both of the runners had lauded athletic careers and both had held the world record for the 100-meter dash.
According to Thiel, the magic of this event is seeing the peak of human speed.
"It's a burst of energy. An economy and a power of motion that is almost unimaginable," he said.
Burrell beat out Lewis, finishing the race in just over 10 seconds. The pair were hundredths of a second apart. Lewis would go on to earn first place in the long jump. Thiel said sporting events like the Goodwill Games unite people.
"To have the world get together and agree on rules, values, morals, it's such a rare thing," he said.
Ted Turner's Goodwill Games ended up being short-lived. The event was not a money maker for the entrepreneur; Turner Broadcasting Service reportedly lost $44 million on the Seattle games alone. After the Soviet Union collapsed, the games were held a few more times around the world, but in 2001 organizers finally called it quits.
Still, Thiel thinks it's worth remembering.
"The games will always have a place in Seattle's sports history. Fades with time, but you never want to forget about one-of-a-kind moments," he said.
With the World Cup on the horizon and hundreds of thousands expected to visit Western Washington, Seattle is preparing for another historic moment.
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